News and Updates from Gadget Hacks: Page 42

We recently showed you the Misfit Shine, a no-charge, app-oriented fitness tracker that you can grab for a hundred bucks. Sony has also decided to get in on the action with their Smartband SWR10—but this thing is so much more than a fitness tracker...the Smartband wants to "log your day, every day".

Admit it, since childhood you've thought to yourself, "When oh when will they finally make Smell-o-vision?" And while that technology hasn't yet made it to our living rooms, we may soon be a step closer towards that particular American dream with the oPhone.

On June 12th, Samsung introduced their newest tablet series, the Galaxy Tab S line. These are the thinnest and lightest in Samsung's history, measuring in at only 6.6mm in width and weighing 465g (10.5-inch) and 294g (8.4-inch). Additionally, both have a WQXGA (2560x1600) Super AMOLED display giving these screens both richer and crisper colors.

With the release of the M8, HTC decided to begin publishing some of its exclusive apps to the Google Play Store. While most of these apps aren't available for download unless you own an HTC device, this practice made it possible for the Taiwanese smartphone manufacturer to issue updates to its users independently of carrier-modified firmware upgrades.

Parrot, a company that specializes in personal drones, has recently come out with new products that'll make those '90s robots look as dated as lava lamps and tie-dye.

In a time when messaging platforms may outnumber the people you'd ever want to message, one of the more popular options—Facebook Messenger—received a big update for both Android (must be part of the free beta program) and iOS, going from version 5.0 to 6.0.

On June 5th, robotics firm Aldebaran and SoftBank Corp., the Japanese giant that owns Sprint (and possibly T-Mobile), unveiled an emotion-sensing robot named Pepper.

I'll freely admit that I'm a SwiftKey diehard. I've used the keyboard since its inception in 2010, and it was one of the first apps I ever paid for back in the days of my beloved Sprint Evo 4G. Since then, I've kept up with all its beta iterations, and have unabashedly installed it on various friend's devices.

In a move that harkens back to the good old days of AOL Instant Messenger, Google has recently snuck a new feature into its Hangouts service.

Unbeknownst to you, hundreds of retailers, shopping malls, coffee shops, and airports track and log your movements. Using sensors installed by retail analytics companies, businesses sniff out your smartphone's MAC address, a unique fixed identifier to your device, whenever your device interacts with their Wi-Fi hotspots.

Lately, it seems, that we live in a two-dimensional world. With smart phones and tablets constantly at our fingertips, it always seems as if we are looking into a screen.

For the month of April, Android maintained it's edge over Apple's iOS platform, 52.5% versus 41.4%, with Blackberry, Microsoft, and Symbian rounding out the top five (2.5%, 3.3%, and 0.2%, respectively).

Update: June 2nd, 2014

Over the past decade, touch screens have changed the way we interact with our electronic devices. Gone are the days of clicking and pecking at keyboards, with these gestures replaced by swipes, taps, and long-presses on most of our newer devices. From the early years spent swapping out vaccuum tubes and reading light indicators, human interaction with computers has been constantly evolving. Can Qeexo's FingerSense usher in the next era in manual input?

Just over a month ago, Google made its camera app available to all devices running Android 4.4 and higher. Originally exclusive to Nexus devices, the app got a UI overhaul and a new Lens Blur mode, but lost some features in the transition.

A month ago, we showed you what I, and many around the web, dubbed the "Nexus Killer". That device is the OnePlus One, a low-priced, high-powered, CyanogenMod-run Android device.

This video will guide you few advanced tricks to speed up Firefox browser. If you apply these tricks it will definitely increase the speed and make your browsers experience sweeter. Watch the video and follow all the steps.

Despite being leaked over a month ago, Sense 6 has now made its official appearance on all major US carriers.

How do you call 9-1-1 when you need to remain silent or can't speak? It's a great question that will finally be answered on May 15th.

HTC is gearing up for Mother's Day with a one day only, half-off promotion on their new HTC One M8.